Safety device for gas appliance

ABSTRACT

A gas appliance includes a pilot burner, one or more main burners, a solenoid valve coupled to the pilot burner and the main burners for controlling the pilot burner and the main burners, and a control circuit coupled to the solenoid valve for controlling the solenoid valve to operate the pilot burner or the main burner remotely. An igniting device may be coupled to the control circuit for being operated by the control circuit to selectively ignite the pilot burner. One or more batteries may be coupled to the control circuit for energizing the control circuit, and a thermo-couple may be coupled to the control circuit for selectively energizing the control circuit when the battery is out of electricity.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a gas appliance, and more particularlyto a gas appliance including a safety or security device forautomatically shut-off the fire or flame in responsive to flame outage,and/or even when the energizing batteries are out of electricity.

2. Description of the Prior Art

Typical gas stoves or gas appliances comprise an igniting deviceactuatable or operatable by the users to selectively ignite a pilotburner which may then be used to ignite one or more main gas stove headsor gas or main burners for burning or for cooking purposes.

For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,094,259 to Hsu discloses one of the typicalautomatic shut-off safety devices for gas stoves comprising a safetyvalve control device retrofitted between a gas inlet pipe and a catchbase of the stove, and including a function shaft which is controlled byan electromagnetic control rod to maintain the open state of the gasintake valve, and a circuit device for energizing an electromagneticcoil to actuate the function shaft to operate the gas intake valve.

However, the electromagnetic control rod and the electromagnetic coiland the circuit device are all required to be coupled to an electricsource, such as a battery, and the members or elements may not beoperated or actuated when the battery is out of electricity.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,059,562 to Anderson, II discloses another typical gasappliance having an automatic gas shut-off device responsive to flameoutage and comprising a flame sensor or temperature sensor located at agas nozzle for detecting the absence of the flame.

However, the flame sensor or temperature sensor is also required to becoupled to an electric source, such as a battery, and the members orelements also may not be operated or actuated when the battery is out ofelectricity, i.e., the main gas stove heads or gas or main burners maynot be suitably shut-off when the battery is out of electricity,particularly when an emergency circumstance or condition is occurred.

The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate theafore-described disadvantages of the conventional gas stoves or gasappliances.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The primary objective of the present invention is to provide a gasappliance including a safety or security device for automaticallyshut-off the fire or flame in responsive to flame outage.

The other objective of the present invention is to provide a gasappliance including a safety or security device for automaticallyshut-off the fire or flame even when the energizing battery is out ofelectricity.

In accordance with one aspect of the invention, there is provided a gasappliance comprising a pilot burner, at least one main burner, asolenoid valve coupled to the pilot burner and the main burner forcontrolling the pilot burner and the main burner, a control circuitcoupled to the solenoid valve for controlling the solenoid valve tooperate the pilot burner or the main burner, an igniting device coupledto the control circuit for being operated by the control circuit toselectively ignite the pilot burner, at least one battery coupled to thecontrol circuit for supplying an electric energy to energize the controlcircuit, a thermo-couple coupled to the control circuit for selectivelyenergizing the control circuit when the battery is out of electricity,and a remote device may further be provided and coupled to the controlcircuit for operating the control circuit remotely.

A detecting device may further be provided and disposed beside the mainburner for detecting whether the main burner is working or not, and thedetecting device is coupled to the control circuit for sending thedetected signal to the control circuit and then to control the pilotburner and/or the main burner.

A changing device may further be provided and coupled to the controlcircuit and coupled to the battery and the thermo-couple for switchingbetween the battery and the thermo-couple, particularly for supplyingelectric energy from the thermo-couple to the control circuit when thebattery is out of electricity. A supercharging device may further beprovided and coupled between the changing device and the thermo-couplefor supercharging or boosting the signal from the thermo-couple.

A switch may further be provided and coupled to the control circuit forselectively operating the control circuit by the users manually.

Further objectives and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent from a careful reading of the detailed description providedhereinbelow, with appropriate reference to the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a control circuit of a gasappliance in accordance with the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring to FIG. 1, a gas appliance in accordance with the presentinvention comprises an igniting device 10 actuatable or operatable bythe users to selectively ignite a pilot burner 11 which may then be usedto ignite one or more main stove heads or main burners 12 for burning. Asolenoid valve 13 may be provided and coupled to the pilot burner 11and/or the main burners 12 for controlling the gas supply to either orboth of the pilot burner 11 and the main burners 12. A control circuit14 is coupled to the igniting device 10 and coupled to the solenoidvalve 13 for controlling or actuating the solenoid valve 13 to operatethe pilot burner 11 and/or the main burners 12. A switch 15 may beprovided and coupled to the control circuit 14 for being actuated oroperated by the users to issue an initiating or initializing signal inorder to actuate or operate the control circuit 14 and thus to controlor actuate the solenoid valve 13 to operate the pilot burner 11 and/orthe main burners 12.

A signal receiving device or remote device 16 may further or optionallybe provided and coupled to the control circuit 14 for initializing oractuating or operating the control circuit 14 remotely. For example, aremote control device or remote signal issuing device may be operated oractuated by the users, and the signal receiving device or remote device16 may receive the remote signals, such as the audio signals which maybe amplified, rectified and/or decoded to actuating or operating thecontrol circuit 14 remotely. A detecting device 20, such as a detectingcircuit 20, a detecting probe 20 or the like may further be provided andcoupled to the control circuit 14 and/or to the solenoid valve 13 and/orto the pilot burner 11 and/or the main burners 12 and/or disposed besidethe pilot burner 11 and/or the main burners 12 for detecting whether thepilot burner 11 and/or the main burners 12 is working or not or fordetecting whether a flame has been generated by the pilot burner 11and/or the main burners 12 or not.

For example, the detecting device 20 or the detecting circuit 20 or thedetecting probe 20 may be used for detecting the absence of the flame orfor detecting the temperature of the flame or the like and may send thedetected signal, such as the detected temperature signal of the flame tothe control circuit 14 which may compare the detected signal or thedetected temperature signal with a presetting or predetermined highvalue, such as a presetting or predetermined high temperature valueand/or a presetting or predetermined low value, such as a presetting orpredetermined low temperature value in order to determine whether thetemperature of the flame or of the main burners 12 or of the pilotburner 11 is over or below the predetermined high or low value. When thedetected signal is higher or lower than the presetting or predeterminedhigh or low value, the control circuit 14 may control or actuate thesolenoid valve 13 to shut-off or to switch off the pilot burner 11and/or the main burners 12.

A switching or converting or changing circuit or device 30 may beprovided and coupled to the control circuit 14, and one or morebatteries 31 are coupled to the changing device 30 or directly coupledto the control circuit 14 for supplying the electric energy or electricsource to energize the control circuit 14 and/or the solenoid valve 13and/or the detecting device 20 and/or the igniting device 10. Athermo-couple 32 may be provided and directly coupled to the changingdevice 30 or indirectly coupled to the changing device 30 via asupercharging circuit or device 33 or directly coupled to the controlcircuit 14, and the thermo-couple 32 may be disposed beside the pilotburner 11 and/or the main burners 12 for allowing the thermo-couple 32to be actuated by the flame generated by the pilot burner 11 and/or themain burners 12 in order to selectively supply the electric energy orelectric source to energize the control circuit 14 and/or the solenoidvalve 13 and/or the detecting device 20 and/or the igniting device 10.

For example, when the pilot burner 11 and/or the main burners 12 isworking or generating the flame, the thermo-couple 32 may be heated oractuated by the flame to generate a voltage or an electric energy orelectric source which may be supercharged or boosted by thesupercharging circuit or device 33, and the thermo-couple 32 may thus beused to energize the control circuit 14 and/or the solenoid valve 13and/or the detecting device 20 and/or the igniting device 10 when thepilot burner 11 and/or the main burners 12 is working or generating theflame, such that the control circuit 14 and/or the solenoid valve 13and/or the detecting device 20 and/or the igniting device 10 may stillbe operated or actuated by the thermo-couple 32 even when the batteries31 are out of electricity. The changing device 30 may automaticallyswitch between the thermo-couple 32 and the batteries 31 when thebatteries 31 are out of electricity.

In operation, the control circuit 14 may be operated or actuated by theswitch 15 or the remote device 16 in order to actuate or operate theigniting device 10 which may be used to selectively ignite the pilotburner 11, and the pilot burner 11 in turn may be used to ignite themain stove heads or main burners 12. At this moment, the control circuit14 may be energized by the batteries 3 1, and the igniting device 10 maynot be used to ignite the pilot burner 11 when the batteries 31 are outof electricity. When the pilot burner 11 and/or the main burners 12 isworking or generating the flame, the thermo-couple 32 may be actuated togenerate the electric energy or electric source and may thus beselectively used to energize the control circuit 14 and/or the solenoidvalve 13 and/or the detecting device 20 and/or the igniting device 10 bythe changing device 30.

It is to be noted that the thermo-couple 32 may generate and supply theelectric energy or electric source to selectively energize the controlcircuit 14 and/or the solenoid valve 13 and/or the detecting device 20and/or the igniting device 10 such that the batteries 31 may beeconomized and may be used longer, and the thermo-couple 32 may still beused to selectively energize the control circuit 14 and/or the solenoidvalve 13 and/or the detecting device 20 and/or the igniting device 10even when the batteries 31 are out of electricity such that the pilotburner 11 and/or the main burners 12 may still be switched off when thebatteries 31 are out of electricity or when an emergency circumstance orcondition is occurred.

The devices or elements 10-15, 20 and 30-33 have been fully disclosed ina co-pending patent application without the remote device 16, and theremote device 16 is separately disclosed and claimed in the presentinvention.

Accordingly, the gas appliance in accordance with the present inventionincludes a safety or security device for automatically shut-off the fireor flame in responsive to flame outage, and/or when the energizingbattery is out of electricity.

Although this invention has been described with a certain degree ofparticularity, it is to be understood that the present disclosure hasbeen made by way of example only and that numerous changes in thedetailed construction and the combination and arrangement of parts maybe resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention as hereinafter claimed.

1. A gas appliance comprising: a pilot burner, at least one main burner,a solenoid valve coupled to said pilot burner and said at least one mainburner for controlling said pilot burner and said at least one mainburner, a control circuit coupled to said solenoid valve for controllingsaid solenoid valve to operate said pilot burner or said at least onemain burner, an igniting device coupled to said control circuit forbeing operated by said control circuit to selectively ignite said pilotburner, at least one battery coupled to said control circuit forsupplying an electric energy to energize said control circuit, athermo-couple coupled to said control circuit for selectively energizingsaid control circuit when said at least one battery is out ofelectricity, and a remote device coupled to said control circuit foroperating said control circuit remotely.
 2. The gas appliance as claimedin claim 1, wherein a detecting device is disposed beside said at leastone main burner for detecting whether said at least one main burner isworking or not, and said detecting device is coupled to said controlcircuit for sending a detected signal to said control circuit.
 3. Thegas appliance as claimed in claim 1, wherein a changing device isprovided and coupled to said control circuit and coupled to said atleast one battery and said thermo-couple for switching between said atleast one battery and said thermo-couple.
 4. The gas appliance asclaimed in claim 3, wherein a supercharging device is further coupledbetween said changing device and said thermo-couple.
 5. The gasappliance as claimed in claim 1, wherein a switch is provided andcoupled to said control circuit for selectively operating said controlcircuit.